Little rant about NHS waste.

On the other side of the pond, health insurance isn't the norm. So count your blessings.

I do agree with everything you say though. I'm one of the few that have the best insurance in the country, and still avoid doctors like the plague.

FWIW Co proxamol was withdrawn from use some years ago due to safety concerns. We do still hand out the poppy juice though!

Bruce

Ah how viewpoint changes over time.

As one who is staring down a short 2 year road to reach George's 'three score years and ten' it is no longer a milestone in my thoughts. I have adjusted the figure up to 'four score years'. Well bloody hell you have to have some targets to aim for in life.

Of course I seem to be blessed with good health which allows me the pleasure of walking through the surrounding forests in the the dappled sunshine while a large chunk of humanity still labours away for a crust ( oh and to pay some of my pension). I seem to have done about 70 Kms so far this week and it was all pleasure.

I have to admit the fact that this could in part be due to giving up 40 years of on / off smoking 12 years ago, reducing alcohol intake to the occasional glass of red, loosing 20 Kg of fat, and getting into gentle daily exercise does seem reasonable to conclude. Especially coupled to the doctors identifying an hereditary Cholesterol problem which is now under control ( it was up at around 12 at one point  .

I know I am lucky in that the old lump off grey matter remains quite functional and the family tree seems to have some long lived genes in it. It allows me the luxury of being around to enjoy my grandson and ooh and aah over the first pictures of his little sister who has just arrived. Two of quite a long lists of reasons why I think differently about how long I want to live NOW from say ten years ago when I had already passed George's current status and did identify a little with his viewpoint.

So...Doctors and their skills and health advice are duly appreciated by me The fact that some of it appeared to take away the 'pleasures' George details has turned out to be not at all onerous especially for the reasons given above.

Ending on a more controversial thought. I have hopes that Euthanasia will have its place in the treatment options by the time I could wish to call for it via a living will.

For now I am happy to call upon the medical profession and readily attend their advised health checkups. Thats it. Its another sunny day.... must get out there. 

regards

Geoff

Geoff

That was an excellent post and it just goes to show that the best person to manage your health is you, but by taking advice from the experts.  If you want to ignore the Doctors, then expect a poxy old age.

I have managed to lose about 5lbs in weight just by skipping desserts and cutting out the ludicrous amounts of restaurants that I used to visit.  Also I had the sense to quit smoking cigars in 1986 (seven King Edwads each and every day) and that did marvels for my stamina.

My cholesterol levels have gone from 6.4 down to 3.9 thanks to a daily statin and my stress levels are zero thanks to a good retirement pension fund.

Old age / retirement is what you make it and all it requires is advance planning and a bit of self discipline.

Regards

Mick

Dear Broce,

I was prescribed Co proxamol in 1985. That was the last time I have taken a painkiller!

ATB from George

Splendid. Keep it that way!

Interesting.  Coproxamol contained paracetamol, so no logic to your statement.  Incidentally the available research IIRC suggests that coproxamol taken occasionally is no more efficacious than paracetamol.  For it to work better, you had to take it regularly.

Kidney stones. Took it for a week or was supposed to. In fact I took it for two days and was so high that I put up with the discomfort till every thing settled down after a week. I took the unused pills back to the surgery!

ATB from George

C'mon George make your mind up.

You use the nhs doctors when it suits you but complain when the same doctors do what they are paid for.

As to this "..I do not plan to live to great old age, and if it happens then I will stoically bear the cross,.." you don't seem that willing to "stoically bear the cross" if you seek nhs funded pain relief?

That was nearly thirty years ago, and yes I would take all the painkillers necessary in a final illness - nothing inconsistent in that. 

I would not go in for surgery, chemo, or radio for example, but I'd make sure that I had a sufficient supply of pain relief. I have certainly paid for that.

On the other hand it is so long since I last had some painkillers that I did not realise Co proxamol was withdrawn, which itself tells a truth.

ATB from George

Will you donate your organs to the NHS or for medical research George?  G

I was hoping to donate my whole body for medical research, as this also saves the trouble of a funeral and so forth, but my organs are already on the donor list assuming that they might be some use.

ATB from George

Thanks.  G

In one of todays papers was an article on why did the NHS spend so much time on the young footballer who had a massive cardiac arrest. EG ressus at least 6 times and massive investment in money and time.

Yet if this happened to an 85 year old not as much effort would be expended or cost invested.

Simple really one is young and supremely fit and had an undiagnosed cardiac condition.

The other is ancient and has many pathologies which are likely to destroy that persons quality of life after several goes at resus.

Also on the radio today they are saying people will live to 110 as a norm in 30 years.

I agree with Clarkson if you can have 30 years as a 20 year old fine. But not 30 years as an 80 year old.

David

As someone who spends lots of time with the elderly I'd suggest Clarkson and others might like to wait until they have reached those ages themselves before passing judgement on how they find it, and indeed what they would like to happen to them when they are old.

The evidence that we will live significantly longer in future is actually quite poor. What seems to be more likely (in developed countries at least) is that more people will live more often to an advanced age. In other words the average longevity will rise slightly because the 'spread' of the population age at death will actually narrow. S more of us can expect to reach a good age, but not so many can anticipate becoming extremely elderly. This improvement in health is because of social change, living conditions, lifestyle, employment etc with a relatively small contributon from modern medicine.

Several people in this thread seem to suggest that medicine is about adding years to life without life to years as if this is an 'either/or' judgement. That is simply not the case, and in fact adding quality of life for people with chronic or previously seriously debilitating illness is a major success of modern healthcare as is reducing the risks of 'events' such as childbirth.

Age itself is not (and should never be) an arbiter of when agressive Rx as opposed to palliative Rx is the correct plan for an individual. Decisions are made about when to withdraw/reduce Rx based on patient choice, situation, co-pathology and a host of other things. I have patients in their 70's for whom a new hip would be inapropriate or unwanted, others in late 80's who would get great value from the procedure.

Bruce

PS Rx = treatment! Medical shorthand alert, sorry.